Game preview
Sinner is about to participate in the Bublik rematch in Vienna, Musetti and Tsitsipas have an R1 showdown
Second seed Zverev starts in ATP 500 qualifiers
October 18, 2025
Corinne Dubreuil/ATP Tour
Alexander Bublik and Jannik Sinner last met at the U.S. Open, with Sinner winning in straight sets.
Andy West
Jannik Sinner and Alexander Bublik could rekindle their 2025 see-saw rivalry at next week’s First Bank Open in Vienna.
If top seed Sinner, the 2023 champion, and eighth seed Bublik both advance, they will face off in the quarterfinals of the ATP 500 Indoor Hard Court event. Bublik is one of three players to defeat the PIF ATP No. 2 at tour level this year, beating the Italian in three sets at the Halle Championship in June. Despite the loss on German grass, Sinner easily defeated Bublik at both the French Open and the U.S. Open.
Before considering a rematch with the Kazakhstan, Sinner will first focus on a first-round clash with Daniel Altmaier, who previously defeated the Italian in a thrilling five-set match at Roland Garros in 2023. Sinner won his most recent tournament in Shanghai earlier this month to take a 2-1 lead in the Lexus ATP Head2Head Series.
Tomas Machak and Flavio Coboli are Sinner’s potential second-round opponents in the top half of the Vienna draw. Bublik opens against Chengdu champion Alejandro Tabilo, while third seed Alex De Minaur will face wild card Yuri Rodionov at home. De Minaur is ranked seventh heading into the PIF ATP Live Event in Turin and is in a position to qualify for the Nitto ATP Finals for the second consecutive year.
Seventh seed Andrey Rublev, the 2020 Vienna champion, will still arrive in Turin with an outside shot to face Cameron Norrie. The winner of this fight will face a strong right-hander: Alexei Popyrin or Matteo Berrettini.
In the bottom half of the draw, second seed and 2021 champion Alexander Zverev will face a qualifier. The German, ranked fourth in the live event, will face fellow top-10 star Karen Khachanov in the quarter-finals.
Lorenzo Musetti, ranked eighth in the live event, looks to make strides in Vienna as he continues his quest for a Nitto ATP Finals debut. However, the Italian will face a tough opening match in the Austrian capital against former world number three Stefanos Tsitsipas. A potential quarterfinal opponent for Musetti and Tsitsipas is sixth seed Daniil Medvedev, who will face Alex Michelson or Corentin Moutei at the Almaty Open on Sunday in his second ATP Tour final of the season.
